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John Hancock

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There were Japanese radio antennas on Chichi-jima that needed to be destroyed. John Hancock recalls the downing of an American plane during that operation which was piloted by a future president. From there, his fighter squadron and carrier participated in the retaking of the Philippines. (6:01)

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It was fighter pilot John Hancock's job at Iwo Jima to keep the kamikazes off the ships. They came in huge waves, but they were slow and easy to hit. The pilots still caused a lot of damage because they were determined to die to achieve it. (4:50)

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The sinking of the Yamato off Okinawa was the coup de grace for the Japanese Navy. Fighter pilot John Hancock recalls the hair raising moments trying to bring down kamikazes. It took him years to forget about it after the war, but then he began speaking about it. (4:12)

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Near the end of the war, fighter pilot John Hancock would escort B-29's to Japan and then cut loose to create mayhem on the ground with his machine guns. He returned to Hawaii to begin training in F-4U Corsairs and one day, he heard so much noise he thought the Japanese were bombing Pearl Harbor again. (3:08)

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Fifty years after the Battle of Midway, John Hancock was at a commemoration event that was also attended by some Japanese veterans. He went up and introduced himself to one of them and was in for quite a surprise. (3:32)

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John Hancock explains why the Navy can lay claim to being on Guadalcanal months before the Marines landed. It had to do with two pilots who were low on fuel and who were reprimanded for the incident. (4:41)

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They had joined the Navy together and were serving on the Yorktown during the Battle of Midway. John Hancock saw the bomb falling that hit his friend Clarence Hill's gun mount. He looked down to the lower deck to see what happened and he wished he had not. (2:54)

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In college after the war, John Hancock was asked if he wanted to join the Navy Reserve. The veteran Navy pilot said he hated the reserve. Then he was told it paid money. Where do I sign? A long career followed alongside his successful working life. (5:39)

John Hardin

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Having attended Mississippi State College (now University) prior to joining the Army Air Corps, John Hardin already gained experience flying planes. He knew from a very young age that he wanted to fly, and so he joined the Air Corps even before the start of WWII. He vividly remembers how devastating it was to hear about the Pearl Harbor attack, and how quickly things shifted as the US prepared to join the fight. (This interview made possible with the support of VAN RUSH.) (4:53)

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Following the beginning of American involvement in World War II, Hardin flew out to Europe with his squadron and landed in Prestwick, Scotland. From there he was told to carry out fighter missions over France and Germany, fighting directly against the Germans who would often fire straight on at him and then dip down out of sight. During one of his missions, Hardin had a deadly close call when a German bullet hit right off his plane's wing tip. (This interview made possible with the support of VAN RUSH.) (7:00)